In praise of ... the Loch Ness monster

Nothing has been more in need of praise this past week than one of the best known icons in the world, the Loch Ness monster, which, tragically, is facing extinction even before it has been discovered.

The culprits are researchers from the Open University Geological Society who have concluded that the celebrated 1934 image of Nessie was probably not a monster after all, but a common elephant from a passing circus taking a swim (as they do).

The claim that the 1934 image corresponds to the bits of an elephant that are above water when it swims has had timely corroboration from Sir David Attenborough's new Planet Earth series, which has shown beautiful footage of the submerged way that elephants do their doggy paddle.

But what happens now? It has taken decades to build Nessie up into an international brand that helps attract large numbers of tourists to Scotland. Unlike with johnny-come-lately rivals such as the Abominable Snowman, there is an actual place where tourists can come to gawp at this global doyen of rural myths. They can't really hope to put a sign up saying "Site of an elephant mistaken for a monster" and hope the tourist dollars continue to roll in. Nessie does not deserve such a fate. She, or he, has never hurt anyone. One can only hope that this whole exposure thing is itself a hoax. Have there actually been any verified sightings of these OU researchers? Maybe Nessie will surprise them all by making another appearance very soon. It is that time of the year.